Sunday, December 1, 2013

Hartline-Wallace-Clay trio makes Tannehill's job easy

BY SEAN DONOVAN

The Miami Dolphins spent a lot of money this past offseason to upgrade their receiving corps, and during Sunday's 23-3 drubbing of the AFC East rival New York Jets, a trio of players made it look like they got their money's worth.

Wide receivers Mike Wallace and Brian Hartline and H-back Charles Clay led a Miami passing attack that ran free most of the afternoon against the hapless Jets, as the Dolphins won their first division game of the season. The three combined to catch 23 of the 28 completions thrown by quarterback Ryan Tannehill.

"The guys were just ready to play," Tannehill said after the game, via the team's website.
Leading the way with nine receptions was Hartline, who also accounted for 127 of Tannehill's 331 yards in the game. The second-year quarterback has always had a good rapport with Hartline and wasn't surprised the veteran wideout was able to have such an impact.

"We knew coming in that he was going to have a big day," Tannehill said of Hartline, who added a 31-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the third quarter. "When your receivers are making plays like that, it makes playing quarterback a lot easier."

Wallace took another step towards justifying his $60 million contract after recording a touchdown of his own, giving him scores in back-to-back games for the first time since joining the Dolphins.

"Mike's building on what he did last week," Tannehill said. "It was fun to watch him play today."

Finally, in a game that was supposed to be a homecoming for injured tight end Dustin Keller, Miami's primary receiving threat from the position set a career high for receptions.

"Charles [Clay] came in clutch today for us," Tannehill said of the third year H-back, who continued his breakout season with 7 catches for 80 yards. "He's a playmaker, he's been doing it all year and he stepped up big again today."